Ninth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

Despite being in the society where marriage is a norm, the proportion of single adults in Indonesia consistently grows in the last four decades, with limited academic attention. Living in the society that highly favors marriage, singles are undervalued and they experience considerable marriage pressures. This study aims at examining the mental health profile of Indonesian singles along with their reasons on remaining singles and their coping strategies. Guided by the Theory of Need to Belong (Baumeister & Leary, 1995), singles’ coping strategies are focused on two alternative relationships: social- and religious- based relationship. A mixed-method design was applied through an online survey to 635 heterosexual young adults aged 26-50 years (M = 31.49; SD = 5.49). Results showed that most participants were involuntarily singles. When compared to marrieds, singles were significantly less satisfied with life, more lonely, and more stressful. Religiosity levels were the best predictor of singles’ life satisfaction, albeit both religiosity and social support were significant predictors. Reasons on remaining single were explained through four themes: compliance to the socially constructed ideal marital relationship, various perceptions of marriage, the degree of readiness to marry, and situational shortcomings. Indonesian singles face considerable societal pressures that influence their well-being. Adopting religious coping strategy and having sufficient social support are proven to be effective to mitigate challenges of being single. The study outcome is essential for policy makers and mental health practitioners in adjusting cultural perceptions toward the universality of marriage and to focus on destigmatization strategies toward singles.